


A Sky Full of Stars

by watermelloon (linumlea)



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Astronomy, M/M, Stargazing, Stars, and it still might just be true, dwarven lore, made-up dwarven legends, tolkien gave us so little info about dwarves that i can write whatever the hell i want
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-25
Updated: 2015-10-25
Packaged: 2018-04-28 01:00:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5071915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/linumlea/pseuds/watermelloon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Bilbo starts living in Erebor, Thorin is his guide through the mountain and shows him the secrets not many know about.<br/>Have a small fic about Bagginshield going to gaze at the starry sky.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Sky Full of Stars

A very pleasant evening it was, indeed. Bilbo gladly accepted the book Ori had offered him that afternoon, one of very few in Westron to be found inside Erebor. He sat by the fire inside his rooms, so engrossed in the story he barely registered the knock on the door. When the knock repeated, more insistent, Bilbo sighed and rose from his comfortable bundle of blankets and furs.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming," he mumbled. He swung the door, only to be greeted by the sight of the King Under the Mountain himself standing outside in his full regal. Self-consciously, Bilbo tugged at his worn out robe.

"Good evening, Master Baggins," Thorin inclined his head. "May I request your company?"

"My company?", Bilbo repeated, blinking in surprise, and spluttered. "Yes, yes of course. What is the matter?"

"If you would fetch something warmer, I wish to show you something."

Bilbo hurried to get his fur coat, one of the gifts from the dwarves, and soon enough they were walking through the corridors of the royal palace.

When he was first given the rooms, Bilbo was not aware they were located in the palace. It took Bofur asking how it felt to live in the royal quarters for Bilbo to realize that maybe his accommodation was rather uncommon. Then he started to notice the unusual size and heaviness of the door to the wing and the royal crests upon every corner. Of course, he had made a fuss out of it, but the only effect his fretting received was Thorin raising his eyebrow and stating that the rooms were one of very few that were functional. The rest of the Company simply chose other locations. On the addition, it only made sense that Bilbo received one of the best rooms, since it was thanks to him their quest was successful. Bilbo snapped his mouth at that, but all of his further rumblings were cut off short - no one had time to find him a new place then, with every pair of hands busy.

Bilbo knew Thorin's rooms were nearby, but he didn't imagine they would be barely one corner away. The unusual thing was the lack of the two guards that always stood on either side of the door. Thorin noticed Bilbo's questioning gaze, when he turned to open the door.

"The guards are... otherwise occupied," he said and motioned for Bilbo to come inside.

He crossed the doorstep reluctantly and stopped right by the door, but Thorin was already inside and crossing the spacious, dimly lit room to step into a small corridor, without the doubt leading to other rooms. He glanced back when Bilbo didn't move and frowned impatiently.

"Master Baggins, please follow me."

Bilbo moved to join him. Thorin stopped by the meticulously sculpted part of the wall inside the corridor. He pressed one of the protrusions and the pieces of stone started to move like a giant puzzle, effectively revealing an entrance to another dark corridor.

They stepped inside. When the entrance closed behind them with a quiet rumble, Bilbo blinked, surprised by the sudden darkness. It took him a while to start to notice faint lines of light inside the walls. He moved to touch them, tracing his fingers along them, pale green light pulsing inside the stone. Lines turned and swirled, painting maps of nonexistent places.

"Is this...", Bilbo breathed. "Is this what you wished to show me?"

Thorin's chuckle had a new depth to it, the sound locked between the walls. "No, but I'm glad you enjoy it."

He stood by Bilbo's side now, gazing at the wall. "This is 'abanu luzun, the stone of the lost. Veins of it run across the whole mountain, but the light is only visible in complete darkness. It guides those who lost their way in the stone."

He touched the wall lightly and turned. "Come, Master Baggins."

They descended further into the corridor, passing the entrances to other corridors leading left and right. The silence was broken only once, when Thorin warned Bilbo of the stairs leading up.

Thorin stopped suddenly and Bilbo almost bumped into him. Thorin's frame tensed, his arms pushing at something above their heads. The stone groaned in complaint, the hatch moving slowly.

Bilbo looked up, gaze falling behind Thorin. In stunned silence, he went up the remaining steps and stepped on a small platform. His breath was coming out of his half-opened mouth in small clouds.

The sky was alight. Stars upon stars, the abundance he had never seen before, familiar constellations lost among new ones revealing themselves.

His breath hitched. "I had never seen anything like it," Bilbo whispered. "How is this possible?"

"We are on the darkest side of the mountain. Lights of Dale do not reach here and only the wilderness spreads at the foot," Thorin's voice was a quiet rumble somewhere to his left and Bilbo turned to face him.

Thorin stood in a small niche in the stone, smoothing down the furs spread on the cold floor. He motioned for Bilbo to join him as he sat down.

Bilbo sighed in content, nestling himself among the furs and gazing up at the night sky.

"Ah, I can see the Sickle of Valar! This must be the northern sky then."

"The sickle...?", Thorin trailed off in confusion. "It is north, but what constellation are you speaking of?"

Bilbo pointed to the seven stars over the horizon and Thorin's face lit up. "This is the Durin's Crown."

They both mused at this and started exchanging the names of constellations known to them, each name different for Dwarves and for Hobbits. Sometimes Thorin included a story behind a certain name.

"If we moved to the east side, we would be able to see Id-Umrul Lomil, the Lovers of Nighttime."

Thorin sighed when Bilbo asked about the story behind the name and seemed reluctant to speak. "There were two dwarves," he started after a long moment of silence. "They met under the starry sky, but as fate dictated they had to part their ways. One went east and the other west, but many years had to pass before either of them could leave their homes. The one that went west one day realized time had been leaking between his fingers and set off to find his other half. When he reached the mountains in the east, he found his lover on deathbed. When the dwarf from the east saw him, they let out their last breath, as if they only waited to see their lover again. The dwarf from the west wailed and wept until merciful Aulë heard his prayers and turned them into stars. They shine together, joined on the sky under which they met."

The story felt incomplete, but Bilbo had a feeling Thorin didn't want to elaborate. He kept his questions to himself.

They sat on the furs late into the night, until Bilbo felt himself starting to shiver. Thorin must have noticed, because he stood and helped Bilbo up. As they walked back into the dark of the mountain, Bilbo stole last glances at the sky full of stars. The hatch closed and dim light shone in the stone again.

Bilbo dreamt many dreams that night, but the only one he remembered in the morning was the one of the meeting under the starry sky.


End file.
